A Tiger with Wings
by kittylover93
Summary: Hermione is done being afraid. She is going to show Draco Malfoy exactly what she thinks of him. Goodbye mouse, hello tiger lady.


**A/N: Hey guys I am not dead I promise! I know I am a horrible writer because I think it has been over a year…if not two years. (Did I mention I am sorry and a horrible writer?) I have just been busy with school and once I was out I could not find a muse who was willing to help me. Tonight I caught one and it is short, but I hope you guys like it and have not completely given up on me.**

The worst thing that could ever happen to a person is fear. I know this fear personally. For years it has always held me back from the greatest things in life. I have never taken that push to take flight and fly amongst the clouds. I have never told someone that I loved them because I was always fearful of the idea of losing the person who holds my heart. I have always had the fear that someone would find my writings and think that they are dreadful. I have never pushed past the fear that has always held my lungs and heart captive at the mere thought of doing something that I had always considered brave. I hide myself amongst the old and dusty books of the library. I let myself hide because it has always been better than facing that fear. That all ends today.

Today is the day when I am going to walk straight up to Draco Malfoy and kiss him in the middle of the great hall in front of everyone. I am finally free of all the fear that has for my whole life held me hostage. My feet glide across the floor as I go down the many sets of stairs to get to the Great Hall. The only thoughts going through my mind consist of knowing that for the longest of time I had been watching Draco go about his everyday motions. Everyone in the school that is not a Slytherin seems to believe that he is nothing more than a copy of his father. I know different from them. I watch the sparkle in his eyes as he works on a potion that has been labeled difficult. The "sneer" people see when he succeeds is not what I witness before me. It is the smile of a man who is determined to do better than what his father is. It is the smile of a man who knows that he is going to take what he loves and go farther in his life.

Draco seems to be afraid of nothing as he soars through the sky chasing after the golden snitch. Daring loops and dives to try his hardest to beat out the famous Harry Potter. Draco is determined to show that he will not be upstaged by anyone. As Harry grabs the snitch and all of the others in Gryffindor yell in victory I watch him instead. The way he slowly descends from the sky and the darkness in his silver eyes. It is impossible for me to really see the despair in his eyes from such great heights, but I know it is there. A fire builds inside of him every single time. I have seen him in the late nights from the Gryffindor tower out on the pitch practicing in the almost dark chasing a practice snitch.

The sound of my lonely steps echo against my ears. Everyone has long since gone to dinner. For a brief moment the sound almost halts my feet to let the fear creep back into my lungs. I can feel my steps get smaller and slower till I am no longer moving. My eyes slide closed and I breathe deep. When my eyes open I can feel the fire in them once more. The fire blocks out the sounds and I know that I can do this. Nothing can stop me now, especially myself.

I won't let my feet stop me. I push off with my toes and start sprinting down the next corridor. My feet catch the stairs and I feel like I am flying as I skip some. I will leave the fear behind me. I can do this. I _will_ be free.

I finally reach the bottom of the stairs and enter the great hall. I can hear Ginny at the Gryffindor table, "Hermione, over here!"

My eyes glance over at her. She's standing there waving her arm to make sure I notice her. A smirk comes over me. I turn my eyes away from her and instead start scanning over the Slytherin table, looking for that platinum blonde hair that only he has. Finally I find him sitting between Crabbe and Pansy. I stride over to the table and make my way down to him. The entire Gryffindor table watching what the little shy Hermione Granger could be up to without Harry and Ron by her side.

I open my mouth and my words are strong instead of the normal quiet mouse I tend to be when Draco Malfoy is concerned, "Draco."

He puts down the fork that was half way to his wonderful pink lips. "Oh look at the little Granger mouse. She seems to have found her voice."

I refuse to let his words put me back down. Even if he has no feelings for me this is what will set me free of my fear. If I can kiss him in the middle of the Great Hall with the entire school watching then I can do anything. "Stand up Draco. I've need to give you something."

He looks to his cohorts and pushes himself up from the bench. I can feel the professors getting ready to break up a fight. Draco struts over to me with a cocky gleam to his eyes, "What Granger, gonna hit me?"

He stopped almost a foot away from me. I closed the distance between us till I was almost right in his face. I looked in his eyes and I could almost see the fire from my eyes reflected in his. "No. I'm going to do this," I said grabbing onto the front of his robes with both of my hands and pulled him toward me. The only reason I was able to do it was because I caught him by surprise. My lips landed on his and I kissed him deeply.

I expected his hands to go to my shoulders and push me roughly away. What I felt instead was his hands wrap around my back and one travel to my hair. He was actually holding me closer to him. The kiss deepened and it felt like we staid like that for hours. The rational part of my brain knew that by the time Draco's lips left mine that the kiss had happened in less than thirty seconds.

My lips were tingling and I couldn't pull my eyes from his. It took a minute for me to look at his whole face. His eyes were glowing like when he figured out the complicated potions. The smile that crossed his face was a beaming smile I had always imagined would be what he looked like beating Harry in quidditch. The Great Hall was so quiet I was sure Ginny heard Draco's next words from all the way across the massive room. "Looks like the mouse was a tiger after all."

"A tiger that found a pair of wings to finally fly free." Draco just laughed and pulled me in closer for another kiss. I knew that if Draco would want it my heart was his. If he ever wanted to give it back I would take it, but there would be no more fear. I had finally tasted the fire and I refused to ever taste the ash of fear again. The world was mine from this moment on. For a prize Draco Malfoy was a great one.

 **Alright. That was the end of the short story. I may add more to it if the muse returns with another little chapter. Please, please review and let me know what you think. I wrote about fear because I know one of my greatest fears with how long I have been gone is that none of you will be here when I finally came back. Let me know you have at least been here. I feel the fire again and if all else fails your reviews will help the fire continue. I really hope you liked it. –Kittylover93**


End file.
